Agriculture: Genetically Modified Crops

The Countess of Mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Health is obliged to take the advice of the Food Standards Agency on the safety of genetically modified products.

Baroness Thornton: Ministers are not obliged to accept the advice of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) on any topic, although the FSA's advice or recommendations will be taken into account in Ministers' decisions.
	In the case of genetically modified products, Ministers have agreed a case-by-case approach to their approval in line with the scientific advice.

Allotments

Baroness Byford: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many allotments were closed in England in each of the years from 2000 to 2009.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: As Government only collect data on the number of applications requesting consent to dispose of statutory allotments, this is difficult to say. However, local authorities are required, under Section 8 of the Allotments Acts 1925, to obtain consent from the Secretary of State to dispose of statutory allotments. Consent cannot be given unless he or she is satisfied that certain criteria are met.
	Between 18 January 2000 and 31 December 2009, 446 applications to dispose of statutory allotments were agreed. This figure is broken down by year as follows:
	
		
			 Year Number of granted disposals 
			 2000 54 
			 2001 52 
			 2002 53 
			 2003 52 
			 2004 59 
			 2005 57 
			 2006 42 
			 2007 28 
			 2008 26 
			 2009 23 
		
	
	It should be noted that not all granted disposal applications necessarily result in entire statutory allotment sites being lost. This is because applications can also request consent to dispose of a number of individual plots within a remaining site. One of the criteria for consent is that adequate alternative provision will be made for displaced plot holders, or that such provision is not necessary or is impracticable.

Armed Forces: Afghanistan

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Snatch Land Rovers are in use by Her Majesty's armed forces deployed in Afghanistan (a) within a base's perimeter, and (b) on patrols outside those perimeters.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Armed Forces: Afghanistan

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty's Government what funds are available to Her Majesty's armed forces in Afghanistan for development aid; and what is the approval authority for the use of those funds.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The Ministry of Defence provides military commanders with the authority and resources to address immediate local stabilisation issues via the Commander's Stabilisation Fund (CSF). The funds are drawn from the HMG Conflict Pool and it is estimated that £1.44 million will be spent by the CSF in 2009-10.

Armed Forces: Afghanistan

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty's Government in the light of the number of British service personnel wounded by improvised explosive devices, whether measures are being taken to increase the capacity of field hospitals at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The capacity of the field hospital at Bastion is regularly reviewed as part of operational planning. This is carried out in conjunction with our International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) partners to ensure the relevant medical cover is available (including a surge capability) to support all ISAF and Afghan National Security Force operations. This planning takes into account the threat posed by improvised explosives devices.

Armed Forces: Ground Vehicles

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are funding research into the development of unmanned ground vehicles to counter the threat of improvised explosive devices.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The Ministry of Defence is funding research into the potential of unmanned ground vehicles to counter a wide range of threats, including that posed by improvised explosive devices.

Armed Forces: Languages

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Taylor of Bolton on 2 March (WA 338), what incentives are in place to increase the number of personnel serving in Her Majesty's armed forces who speak the Dari Persian language, known as "Farsi e Dari" or "Farsi", one of the two official languages of Afghanistan.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: Farsi is a mandated operational language (currently Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Pashto and Somali) entitling military personnel with current language skills, confirmed by means of Ministry of Defence Language Examinations Board examinations, to financial awards under the Defence Operational Languages Award Scheme.

Armed Forces: Rehabilitation

Lord Morris of Manchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the finding of the National Audit Office that capacity at the Headley Court rehabilitation centre and other providers for troops disabled in Afghanistan and other deployments will soon be exceeded; and what action they are taking.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The Ministry of Defence welcomed the report by the National Audit Office Treating Injury and Illness arising on Military Operations, published on 10 February 2010, and its recognition of the first-class clinical treatment and rehabilitation services given to servicemen and women who are seriously injured on operations. While overwhelmingly positive in its assessment of the medical care provided for Service personnel, we are aware that the NAO remarked that
	"casualty numbers from military operations are placing increasing demands on Selly Oak and Headley Court but have been managed to date"
	and that
	"current contingency plans for providing further capacity have recently improved but there is scope for further development".
	Since May 2007, the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Headley Court, has had a total of 66 ward beds for the care of complex trauma and neurological in-patients. The majority of such patients are accommodated in these ward beds, but some who have an appropriate level of function can alternatively be accommodated in 15 bed spaces in a separate building on-site which are suitable for their clinical needs. These beds are part of a total of 120 hostel beds for patients whose condition (trauma or less serious musculoskeletal problem) allows them to be independent of nursing.
	Our contingency plans for Headley Court include greater use of the 15 non-ward bed spaces mentioned above, for those patients whose clinical condition allows. In addition, as announced to the House on 10 February 2010 (Official Report, col. WS49), we shall create up to 30 more ward beds at Headley Court later this year.
	Our contingency plans also include greater use of our regional rehabilitation capability for the treatment of less seriously injured personnel who might otherwise be accommodated at Headley Court. We have 15 regional rehabilitation units, which focus on the assessment and treatment of musculoskeletal injuries and sports medicine and are staffed by specially trained doctors, physiotherapists and rehabilitation instructors. On 1 April 2009, the Royal Air Force was appointed lead service for the network of RRUs and the delivery of defence intermediate musculoskeletal rehabilitation, in partnership with the director of defence rehabilitation and Army and Royal Navy headquarters.

Arm's Length Bodies

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual expenditure of each of the 750 arms-length bodies mentioned on page 53 of Putting the Frontline First: Smarter Government; and which arms-length bodies are being (a) merged, and (b) abolished.

Lord Myners: Details of arm's length bodies sponsored by central government are set out in the Cabinet Office publication, Public Bodies. The 752 bodies referred to on page 53 of Putting the Frontline First: Smarter Government (CM 7753) includes:
	all non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) named in Public Bodies 2008 (Cabinet Office), except for independent monitoring boards, since these are multiple bodies of a single type, locally constituted, and staffed by volunteers;executive agencies;non-ministerial departments; anda small number of other bodies sponsored by central departments (eg charities and independent bodies), which are outside the standard Cabinet Office classification.
	There is currently no single database detailing the precise annual expenditure of all arm's length bodies across government in a single place and format.
	However, the annual expenditure of individual NDPBs can be located in each central department's annual "public bodies" directories, links to which can be found on the Civil Service website.1 An updated list of executive agencies and non-ministerial departments can be found on the Cabinet Office website2-this includes links to their individual websites, where copies of their accounts, which will include their overall annual expenditure, can be found.
	The 123 bodies announced in Smarter Government that have or are due to be (a) merged or (b) abolished, subject to the necessary legislation and consultation, are as follows:
	(a) Bodies to be merged
	the Sentencing Advisory Panel and Sentencing Guidelines Council;
	the Postgraduate Medical Education Training Board with the General Medical Council;
	four museums sponsored by the Ministry of Defence are being merged together into the new National Museum of the Royal Navy:
	Royal Marines Museum;Royal Naval Museum;Royal Naval Submarine Museum; andFleet Air Arm
	(b) Bodies to be abolished
	15 regional advisory committees on agricultural workers in England;
	16 agricultural wages boards;
	52 advisory committees for the appointment of justices of the peace will be removed, by reducing their number from 101 to 49;
	4 court boards will be removed by April 1 2010, reducing them from 23 to 19 in line with new court regional areas;
	Her Majesty's Courts Inspectorate; and
	The number of separate publicly funded sector skills bodies will be reduced by 30 or more over the next three years following the Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills commitment in Chapter 6 of the Skills for Growth White Paper.3 Individual bodies involved have not yet been confirmed.
	1 See: http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/resources/ndpbs.aspx
	2 For Executive Agencies: http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/ministerial_responsibilities/executive_agencies.aspx
	For Non-Ministerial Departments: http://www.cabinetoffice. gov.uk/ministerial_responsibilities/non_ministerial_dept.aspx
	3 Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (November 2009), "Skills For Growth: The National Skills Strategy". London: the Stationary Office (CM 7641)

British Transport Police

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Adonis on 1 March (WA 319-20), who they plan to consult in the quinquennial review of the British Transport Police.

Lord Adonis: The need for consultation, and the identity of those to be consulted, will be among the issues to be considered when setting the remit for the review later this year.

British Wind Energy Association

Lord Vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in citing data provided by the British Wind Energy Association, they have assessed the methodology used to collect those data.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Where the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA), now RenewableUK, data have been cited the methodology to collect and collate the data has not been assessed, though the origin of the information is made clear.

Buying Solutions

Baroness Northover: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much was paid by the Department of Energy and Climate Change and its agencies to (a) PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) KPMG, (c) Deloitte, (d) Ernst & Young, (e) Grant Thornton, (f) BDO Stoy Hayward, (g) Baker Tilly, (h) Smith & Williamson, (i) Tenon Group, (j) PKF, (k) McKinsey and Company, and (l) Accenture, since its creation; how they monitor contracts with those firms; and how the department reports (1) during, and (2) at the end of, contracts to Buying Solutions.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Since its inception Department of Energy and Climate Change has made following payments to the companies listed above
	
		
			 Supplier's Name Amount Paid (£) 
			 PricewaterhouseCoopers 4,199,192.61 
			 KPMG 924,091.86 
			 Deloitte 1,244,427.34 
			 Ernst & Young 992,837.46 
			 Grant Thornton Nil 
			 BDO Stoy Hayward Nil 
			 Baker Tilly 403,125.00 
			 Smith & Williamson Nil 
			 Tenon Group Nil 
			 PKF Nil 
			 McKinsey and Company 104,000.00 
			 Accenture 201,825.00 
		
	
	Contracts are managed in accordance with DECC's delegated budget management procedures and unsatisfactory performance escalated as appropriate and reported to Buying Solutions in the normal way.

Buying Solutions

Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much was paid by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, its predecessors and its agencies to (a) PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) KPMG, (c) Deloitte, (d) Ernst and Young, (e) Grant Thornton, (f) BDO Stoy Hayward, (g) Baker Tilly, (h) Smith and Williamson, (i) Tenon Group, (j) PKF, (k) McKinsey and Company, and (l) Accenture, in each of the past five years for which information is available; how they monitor contracts with those firms; and how the department reports to Buying Solutions (1) during, and (2) at the end of, contracts.

Lord Young of Norwood Green: Details of the amounts paid to the named companies by the department and its predecessors in each of the past five financial years have been placed in the Library of the House.
	Contract monitoring regimes will be determined on a case-by-case basis. The department may choose voluntarily to provide feedback to Buying Solutions but is under no obligation to do so.
	I have asked the chief executives of the executive agencies to respond directly to the noble Lord.
	
		
			 Supplier DTI (04-05) (£) DTI (05-06) (£) DTI (06-07) (£) DTI (1 Apr 07-30 Jun 07) (£) BERR & DIUS (01 Jul 09-07 Jan 08) (£) BERR (01 Jan 08-31 Mar 08) (£) DIUS (01 Jan 08-31 Mar 08) (£) BERR (08-09) (£) DIUS (08-09) (£) BERR 1 Apr 09-4 Jun 09) (£) DIUS (1 Apr 09-4 Jun 09) (£) BIS (5 Jun 09-12 Mar 10) (£) 
			 Accenture (UK) LTD 20,121.00   36,669.40 
			 Baker Tilly Corporate Finance LLP 36,963.80 127,668.95 15,000.00 70,000.00 
			 BDO LLP 370,789.60 3,311,304.42 366,650.76 50,352.73  55,400.10  23,061.74 
			 Deloitte Consulting (PTY) LTD  885.67  913.91 
			 Deloitte LLP 9,640.875.00 8,455,635.56 5,888,422.15 2,171,560.54 2,082,805.48 749,998.39  2,984,981.36  331,193.94  1,215,182.10 
			 Deloitte MCS LTD 43,004.00   146,863.87 
			 Ernst & YOUNG LLP 1,944.120.62 2,925,959.35 2,239,849.20 665,938.21 336,913.39 68,436.00  743,623.55  8,343.19  152,344.85 
			 Grant Thornton UK LLP 51,995.1615,282.50   26,285.001,793.05 
			 KPMG 888,673.92 337,555.15 71,226.32  80,254.65   294,756.82 
			 KPMG Audit plc 5,012.40 6,580.00   
			 KPMG LLP 2,053,442.55 2,702,856.00 538,021.15 218,254.06 230,105.43 144,069.95  1,551,386.59  704,180.50  711,891.43 
			 Mckinsey and Company 95,000.00 87,300.00   
			 PKF (UK) LLP 371,579.21 433,594.05 32,444.09 5,243.427,067.5244,168.00 
			 Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP 2,514,177.78 3,132,232.61 4,869,376.67 605,327.55 2,162,300.29  1,500.00 8,280,786.13 101,500.00 294,118.02  1,720,122.41 
			 RSM Tenon LTD12,586.46 
			 PKF Accountants and Business Advisors   6,892.38  
			 Tenon Ltd 
			 Tenon Outsourcing 
		
	
	The figures above are taken from "Mentor", the BIS central finance system. Where in-year dates are detailed these reflect the date of formation of BERR and DIUS (1 July 2007), BIS (5 June 2009) and that prior to 8 January 2008 ex-BERR and ex-DIUS expenditure.
	In addition to the above, the data for the Universities and Skills Group (USG) of former DIUS continued to be separately maintained on the DCSF central finance system "iFIS" for financial years 2007/08 and 2008/09. IFIS records show the following payments.
	
		
			 DIUS USG 2007-08 
			 PricewaterhouseCoopers £387,359 
			 Deloitte & Touche LLP £6,809 
			 Ernst & Young LLP £104,402 
			 PKF £269,778 
		
	
	
		
			 DIUS USG 2008-09 
			 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP £100,000

Civil Service: Redeployment

Earl Attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministry of Defence civil servants are in a redeployment pool.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministry of Defence civil servants working in Greater London are in a redeployment pool.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The Ministry of Defence manages its surplus staff by using the Redeployment Pool (RDP). This service enables those who are or who will become surplus to be given priority consideration for vacancies. Staff in the RDP usually continue working in their last directorate or are redeployed to cover short-term tasks. On average, staff spend six months in the RDP before finding a post or leaving the department. The RDP is also used by civilian staff returning from overseas postings, including in operational theatres. At 1 January 2010 there were 1,525 employees in the RDP, of which 155 were working in the London Government Office Region.

Digital Economy Bill

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the report commissioned by the Home Office from Dr Linda Papadopoulous on links between media images and aggressive behaviour; and what account they took of that report in framing the provisions of the Digital Economy Bill.

Lord West of Spithead: We are grateful for Dr. Papadopoulos's review which contributes to the ongoing debate around sexualisation and the links between media images and aggressive behaviour. The Government have already committed to the following recommendations contained with the Sexualisation of Young People Review:
	to run a public awareness campaign aimed at challenging the attitude and perceptions that lead to abuse within teenage relationships, including producing a pack for schools so that teachers can build on issues arising from the campaign;to launch an online "one-stop shop" to let parents report their worries over irresponsible marketing which sexualises children; andto support the NSPCC in its work to make manufacturers and retailers take greater responsibility for merchandise which is offensive and harmful.
	In addition, the Government have agreed that:
	the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) will strengthenthe issues of gender equality and violence against women and girls (VAWG) in initial teacher training (ITT) and continuing professional development (CPD) of teachers and support staff, where they form part of the training for implementing the new PSHE curriculum.the TDA will consider whether the references to gender equality covered by the qualified teacher status (QTS) standards and associated guidance need strengthening when it undertakes its review of professional standards this year;the DCSF will produce a produce new guidance to help schools both to prevent and respond to VAWG issues. The guidance will demonstrate how these issues can be addressed in relevant aspects of the curriculum. That would include PSHE and sex and relationships education, where there are particular opportunities to address such issues; andrevised guidance on sex and relationships education (SRE) will be published later this year, following public consultation, with a stronger emphasis on relationships than in previous guidance.
	Dr Papadopoulos is meeting the Home Secretary in order to present her findings in full.
	The provisions of the Digital Economy Bill were drawn up prior to the publication of the Sexualisation of Young People Review.

Expenditure: Office Equipment

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total expenditure, excluding value added tax, on photocopier paper by (a) the Central Office of Information, (b) the UK Statistics Authority, (c) the National School of Government, and (d) the Cabinet Office, in the latest year for which figures are available.

Baroness Crawley: Excluding VAT, (a) COI spent £14,028.58 on photocopier paper in 2008/9, (b) UKSA including ONS spent £19,482 on paper (includes basic printing as well as photocopying) for the period January-December 2009, (c) the National School of Government spent £22,631.05 on photocopier paper in 2008-09 and (d) the Cabinet Office spent £37,778.19 on paper for all the multi-functional devices (printers/photocopiers) for the period April-December 2009.

Expenditure: Office Equipment

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total expenditure, excluding value added tax, on photocopier paper by the Audit Commission in the latest year for which figures are available.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission and I have asked the chief executive of the Audit Commission to write to the noble Lord direct.
	Letter from Steve Bundred, Chief Executive, Audit Commission, to Lord Bates, dated March 2010.
	Your Parliamentary Question outlined above has been passed to me to reply.
	The Audit Commission's total expenditure, excluding VAT, on photocopier paper was £29,020.21 for the period 1 April 2009 to 31 January 2010.
	A copy of this letter will appear in Hansard.

Government Departments: Consultancy Services

Baroness Warsi: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much the Ministry of Defence and its agencies spent on (a) public relations consultants, and (b) public affairs consultants, in each of the past three years; and for what purposes.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: This information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. A summary of the Ministry of Defence's wider expenditure on external assistance, including public relations and public affairs consultants, has been placed annually in the Library of the House since 1995-96.
	As with all the goods and services we procure, we apply robust principles when buying in external advice on public relations and marketing services. These principles include securing best value for money; ensuring probity and accountability; enabling competition wherever possible; and ensuring compliance with the relevant provisions of UK and EU law.
	We contract with companies in the Public Relations Framework where this makes good business sense. The Framework is a centralised procurement service run by the Central Office of Information.

Government: Office Equipment

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total expenditure, excluding value added tax, on photocopier paper, by (a) the Department for Work and Pensions, and (b) each of its agencies in the latest year for which figures are available; and what was the average purchase price, excluding value added tax, of a 500-sheet ream of white A4 80 gsm photocopier paper paid by each of the Department for Work and Pensions's agencies in the latest period for which figures are available.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: For the Financial Year 2008-09 this department, including all its executive agencies, had an annualised spend of £3.21 million, inclusive of delivery and excluding VAT, on A3 and A4 photocopier paper. For this same period the average purchase price, excluding value added tax, of a 500 sheet ream of white A4 80 gsm photocopier paper purchased by this department was £1.70.

Health: Tropical Diseases

Lord Dykes: To ask Her Majesty's Government what response they have made to the recent report of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Lord Brett: The Department for International Development (DFID) welcomes the broad findings of the sixth report of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.
	The UK Government are strongly committed to reducing death and suffering from malaria. DfID has pledged £1 billion until 2015 to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM). In addition DfID is providing £40 million of support over two years to the pilot of the Affordable Medicines Facility for Malaria (AMFm). The UK has also pledged £6 billion up to 2015 to strengthen health systems in developing countries which are essential to delivering the full impact of interventions to control malaria.
	DfID is aware of the concerns raised by the APPG around the potential threat of increasing resistance to anti-malarial drugs which has emerged on the Thai-Cambodia border. DfID's Research and Evidence Division is working closely with WHO Global Malaria Programme (GMP), country malaria programmes in South-East Asia, and other donors to develop effective strategies to identify resistance and contain its spread.

House of Lords: Estate

Lord Bates: To ask the Chairman of Committees how much in rent, business rates and utility bills has been paid to date for the House of Lords' part of 14 Tothill Street.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: The amounts paid to date by the House of Lords in respect of 14 Tothill Street are as follows.
	
		
			 Rent £3,255,000 
			 Rates £136,000 
			 Utilities £41,000 
			 Total £3,432,000

Housing: Construction

Lord Burnett: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many housing starts there were in each quarter of the last two years for (a) the private sector, (b) registered social landlords, and (c) council housing.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The CLG house-building starts information is currently being revised to take account of methodological improvements. These improvements are reflected in the latest quarter housing starts for October to December 2009 only, which were published in the latest "House Building December quarter: England release". This publication can be found at the Communities and Local Government website at www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/doc/14735141.doc.
	Data for this quarter are replicated in the table below:
	
		
			  House building starts 
			  Financial year Quarter Private Enterprise Registered Social Landlords Local Authority Total 
			 England 2009-10 3 15,680 3,980 60 19,720 
		
	
	Because the latest quarter's starts figure is not directly comparable with earlier published figures, we have removed the historic time series of starts from the Communities and Local Government website.
	We are working with the suppliers of the data in question to correct and finalise the revision to the time series as a priority, and we will publish the improved data alongside the 2009 Ql figures on 20th May. A fuller explanation of this issue can be found in the latest release published at the web address quoted above.

National Haemoglobinopathy Register

Lord Smith of Clifton: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people are on the National Haemoglobinopathy Register.

Baroness Thornton: The National Haemoglobinopathy Registry (NHR) is a database designed to collect information about patients with red cell disorders (mainly sickle cell disease and thalassaemia major) from treatment centres around the country.
	There have been 1,827 patients as of 11 March 2009 consented and entered into the registry since its inception last year. The number of patients registered continues to increase at a constant rate.

National Haemoglobinopathy Register

Lord Smith of Clifton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps have been taken to ensure that all patients with sickle cell disease and thalassaemia are on the National Haemoglobinopathy Register.

Baroness Thornton: The National Haemoglobinopathy Register is patient based, is voluntary and requires patient consent for data to be inputted by National Health Service providers of haemoglobinopathy services.
	The patient support groups (UK Thalassaemia and Sickle Cell Society) have been actively engaged and are proactively supporting and advertising the registry.

National Haemoglobinopathy Register

Lord Smith of Clifton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps have been taken to ensure that the National Haemoglobinopathy Register is connected to centralised electronic records through the National Health Service National Programme for IT.

Baroness Thornton: A decision was taken during the formation of the National Haemoglobinopathy Registry (NHR) that patients' National Health Service number should be recorded. This will mean that information in the NHR will be able to link to electronic patient records and the systems and services being rolled out as part of the National Programme for Information Technology.

NHS Litigation Authority

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many times the NHS Litigation Authority has been successfully sued in the past three years.

Baroness Thornton: The NHS Litigation Authority has been successfully sued once per year in each of the past three years financial years. All three cases were judicial reviews.

NHS Litigation Authority

Lord Bates: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many employment tribunal cases the NHS Litigation Authority has (a) won, (b) lost, and (c) settled out of court.

Baroness Thornton: The NHS Litigation Authority has not had any employment tribunal cases, and does not handle employment tribunal cases on behalf of National Health Service bodies.

NHS: Medical Records

Lord Rea: To ask Her Majesty's Government what factors were considered before the decision to proceed with the full introduction of summary care records in the National Health Service before the publication of the final report by the independent evaluation team.

Baroness Thornton: The summary care record (SCR) early adopter programme and the initial summary care record (SCR) independent evaluation were undertaken in order to identify key issues and challenges impacting the adoption of the SCR ahead of national rollout. A report from the independent evaluation was published in May 2008 and can be found at www.haps.bham.ac.uk/publichealth/cfhep/documents/CFHEP_002_SCRIE_Final_Report_2008.pdf.
	Following the conclusion of the early adopter programme, a continuing evaluation programme has been put in place to facilitate ongoing learning, and a further report will be published in due course.

NHS: Medical Records

Lord Rea: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the public information programme informing patients about summary care records in the National Health Service and the choices open to them.

Baroness Thornton: A review of the public information programme was undertaken during the early adopter phase of the summary care record (SCR) programme so that the lessons from that phase could be learnt, and the programme updated, ahead of national rollout of the SCR. Research and interviews conducted provided the basis for an updated SCR public information programme toolkit, which was published in June 2009.
	As a result of the review the process to opt out of having a SCR was made easier. Information to inform patients' choices is accessible and is available in a wide range of languages and formats, including large print, easy read, audio and Braille. Patients can also telephone a dedicated National Health Service care records service information line for advice, where translation services are available for patients for whom English is not their first language.

NHS: Procurement

Lord Birt: To ask Her Majesty's Government why the Department of Health suspended the procurement of community services in all primary care trusts in the east of England; and what assessment they have made of the effects of doing so.

Baroness Thornton: Following publication of new guidance1 on 5 February 2010 on the assurance of future options for the provision of community services, officials have asked strategic health authorities to ensure primary care trusts, including Great Yarmouth and Waveney, review plans for future provision of community services.
	Note:
	1 Transforming Community Services: The assurance and approvals process for PCT-provided Community services (Department of Health, February 2010)

NHS: Service Providers

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government what legal advice they have sought on the Secretary of State for Health's policy of making the National Health Service the preferred provider of NHS care; and what the advice was on how that policy complies with procurement law.

Baroness Thornton: The department does not normally disclose legal advice to Ministers. Further guidance on the application of this policy will be set out in a revised primary care trust procurement guide, which must be consistent with law and is due to be published this month.

NHS: Service Providers

Lord Birt: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Health had received relevant legal advice before announcing on 17 September 2009 his preference for the National Health Service above other providers of healthcare.

Baroness Thornton: The department would not normally disclose the details of any legal advice to Ministers. Further guidance on the application of this policy will be set out in a revised primary care trust procurement guide, which must be consistent with law and is due to be published this month.

Police: National Security

Lord Kilclooney: To ask Her Majesty's Government to whom the relevant chief constable of the relevant police force makes a request for support by the military if there is a national security concern in any part of the United Kingdom.

Lord West of Spithead: Military Aid to the Civil Power (MACP) is the provision of assistance to police forces by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Armed Forces for the maintenance of law, order and public safety. In effect, this means the use of defence capabilities to assist directly in maintaining law and order in situations that are demonstrably beyond the capability or capacity of the police (or another civil power).
	Police Forces throughout the UK submit requests for military assistance via the Home Office (Office for Security and Counter Terrorism) for approval with the exception of the Police Service of Northern Ireland who submit requests to the Northern Ireland Office. Any military assistance request is subject to MoD ministerial approval.

Powers of Entry etc. Bill [HL]

Lord Selsdon: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord West of Spithead on 14 November 2007 (WA 25), under which Acts and secondary legislation listed in the Schedule to the Powers of Entry etc. Bill [HL] officials of the Home Office and of public or private bodies answerable to the Home Secretary or otherwise exercising powers of entry can enter and search the homes or business premises of United Kingdom citizens.

Lord West of Spithead: The Home Department has enacted 52 powers of entry through 21 Acts and six powers of entry through five statutory instruments as set out in the attached tables.
	
		
			 Primary
			 Year Statute Department responsible No of powers 
			 2001 Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 HO 3 
			 2003 Crime (International Co-operation) Act 2003 HO 2 
			 2001 Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 HO 1 
			 1994 Drug Trafficking Act 1994 HO 2 
			 2003 Extradition Act 2003 HO 5 
			 1971 Immigration Act 1971 HO 7 
			 1999 Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 HO 2 
			 1839 Metropolitan Police Act 1839 HO 1 
			 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 HO 2 
			 1997 Police Act 1997 HO 1 
			 1984 Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 HO 1 
			 2002 Police Reform Act 2002 HO 1 
			 2005 Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 HO 1 
			 2001 Private Security Industry Act 2001 HO 1 
			 2002 Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 HO 5 
			 2005 Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 HO 1 
			 2000 Terrorism Act 2000 HO 8 
			 2006 Terrorism Act 2006 HO 1 
			 2001 Vehicles (Crime) Act 2001 HO 4 
			 1988 Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 HO 1 
			 1968 Firearms Act 1968 HO 2 
			   21 52 
		
	
	
		
			 Secondary  
			 Year SI No Authority. Title Dept No of Powers 
			 1998 472 Prison Act 19491 Criminal Justice & Public Order Act 1994 Secure Training Centre Rules 1998 HO 1 
			 2006 750 Police Act 1997 Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) (Registration) Regulations 2006 HO 1 
			 2008 296 European Communities Act 1972 Controlled Drugs (Drug Precursors)(Community External Trade) Regulations 2008 HO 1 
			 2005 3180 Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 (Enforcement of Overseas Forfeiture Orders) Order 2005 HO 2 
			 1950 1642 Distribution of German Enemy Property Act 1949 distribution of German Enemy Property (No 1) Order 1950 HO 1 
			 5 6

Powers of Entry etc. Bill [HL]

Lord Selsdon: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord West of Spithead on 14 November 2007 (WA 25), under which Acts and secondary legislation listed in the Schedule to the Powers of Entry etc. Bill [HL] officials of the Department for Transport and of public or private bodies answerable to the Secretary of State for Transport or otherwise exercising powers of entry can enter and search the homes or business premises of United Kingdom citizens.

Lord Adonis: The Department for Transport is the department of the UK Government responsible for the legislation listed below which is contained in the schedule to the Powers of Entry etc Bill (version of 10 March 2010). The number in brackets is the number of powers of entry contained in that legislation (the basis of this information is a table held by the Home Office; the information is published by the Home Office on its website):
	Primary Legislation
	Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990 (1)
	Aviation Security Act 1982 (6)
	British Railways Act 1993 (4)
	Channel Tunnel Act 1987 (1)
	Civil Aviation Act 1982 (3)
	Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 (2)
	Harbours Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847 (3)
	Highways Act 1980 (6)
	International Carriage of Perishable Foodstuffs Act 1976 (1)
	International Road Haulage Permits Act 1975 (1)
	Merchant Shipping Act 1995 (7)
	Port of London Act 1968 (6)
	Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Act 1991 (2)
	Railways Act 1993 (1)
	Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 (3)
	Road Traffic Act 1988 (6)
	Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (4)
	Shipping and Trading Interest (Protection) Act 1995 (1)
	Transport Act 1968 (5)
	Transport Act 2000 (2) (1 repealed)
	Transport and Works Act 1992 (2)
	Secondary Legislation
	Agricultural or Forestry Tractors (Emission of Gaseous and Particulate Pollutants) Regulations 2002 (2)
	Alconbury Airfield (Rail Facilities and Connection to East Coast Main Line) Order 2003 (1)
	Biofuel (Labelling) Regulations 2004 (2)
	Carriage of Goods (Prohibition of Discrimination) Regulations 1977 (2)
	Channel Tunnel (Security) Order 1994 (4)
	Civil Aviation (Working Time) Regulations 2004 (1)
	Cross-border Railway Services (Working Time) Regulations 2008 (1)
	Hovercraft (General) Order 1972 (1)
	Measuring Instruments (Exhaust Gas Analysers) Regulations 2006 (2)
	Measuring Instruments (Taximeters) Regulations 2006 (2)
	Merchant Shipping (Counting and Registration of Persons on Board Passenger Ships) Regulations 1999 (1)
	Motor Vehicles (Tests) Regulations 1981 (1)
	Network Rail (West Coast Main Line) Order 2004 (1)
	Passenger Car (Fuel Consumption and CO2 Emissions Information) Regulations 2001 (2)
	Road Transport (International Passenger Services) Regulations 1984(l)
	Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005 (1)
	Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 (1)
	To provide further information relating to the availability of powers of entry by officials of the Department for Transport and of public or private bodies answerable to the Secretary of State or otherwise could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Railways: Consultants

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the cost of employing consultants and other advisers in setting up Diesel Trains Limited for the aborted Diesel Multiple Unit procurement exercise.

Lord Adonis: The cost of employing consultants and other advisers in setting up Diesel Trains Limited was approximately £80,000 (including VAT).

Railways: Thameslink

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much has been spent on consultants and advisers in connection with the procurement of the new fleet of trains for the Thameslink project.

Lord Adonis: From summer 2007, the Department for Transport has spent about £13 million to date on specialist consultants and advisers in connection with the new fleet of trains for the Thameslink project. This resource has included financial, procurement, technical, legal, planning and other specialist advice required to deliver the Thameslink rolling stock project, which is one of the largest rolling stock orders in the country.

Taxation: Benefits

Baroness Massey of Darwen: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the distribution of benefits by income decile to married couples with children under three.

Baroness Crawley: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, Director General for ONS, to Baroness Massey of Darwen, dated March 2010.
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what is the distribution of benefits by income decile to married couples with children under three. (HL2843).
	Table 1 shows the average cash benefits received by two adult households with children, by equivalised disposable income decile groups in 2007-08, the latest period for which data are available. Figures for married couples and for households with children aged less than three are unavailable.
	These estimates are based on data collected through the Expenditure and Food Survey, which has a sample size of approximately 6,100 households. When taking a sub-sample and then breaking down into decile groups, the new sub-samples become quite small. Therefore, caution should be exercised when drawing any conclusions from these estimates.
	
		
			 Table 1: Average cash benefits by decile groups of 2 adult households with children, 2007-08 
			  Decile groups of all households ranked by equivalised disposable income 
			  Bottom 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th Top All households 
			 Average per household (£ per year) 
			 Number of households in the population (000s) 351 386 418 501 510 578 550 546 501 484 4,786 
			 Tota1 cash benefits 1 5,915 5,482 5,154 4,252 3,672 3,070 2,074 2,323 2,494 2,084 3,652 
		
	
	1 Cash benefits include: retirement pension, job seeker's allowance (contribution and income based). incapacity benefit, widow's benefits, statutory maternity pay/allowance, income support and pension credit, child benefit, housing bereft, invalid care allowance, attendance allowance, disability living allowance, war pensions/war widows' persons, severe disablement benefit, student support, government training schemes and tax credits (child tax credit and waking tax credit).
	Source: Office for National Statistics, based on data from "The effects of taxes and benefits on household income, 2007-08".

Trinitas Services Ltd

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual rent received by Trinitas Services Ltd from holiday cottage lettings.

Lord Adonis: Trinitas Services Ltd. is a private company (Company No. 02801613) limited by shares and wholly owned by a registered charity; its latest accounts are available from Companies House and show a turnover of £730,375 in 2008-09.

Visas

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the £10 fee for issuing a confirmation of acceptance for studies form to prospective foreign students seeking a United Kingdom visa covers the cost of processing such forms; and how many have been issued since their introduction.

Lord West of Spithead: The fee of £10 for issuing a confirmation of acceptance for studies does not recover the full cost of issuing it.
	13,622 certificates of acceptance have been issued since 5 October 2009 up to the week ending 7 March 2010.